Over Jaromir Jagr’s impressive National Hockey League career, the biggest rivalries that stand out for the 45-year-old living legend are Pittsburgh and Philadelphia or between the New York Rangers and the New Jersey Devils.

“I would say I’ve been in a lot of them over the years,” he said, following Saturday’s morning skate at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

Chalk another one up on his list.

Now with the Calgary Flames, the second instalment of the Battle of Alberta will count as Jagr’s first one as the team had just inked the superstar future NHL Hall of Famer to a one-year deal when the teams last met on Oct. 4 — a 3-0 Flames faceplant to start the 2017-18 campaign.

But, to the surprise of absolutely no one, he is experienced in these types of things and can grasp what this game means to the entire province.

“When you’re talking to the people on the street, they’re very excited about this game,” Jagr said. “It’s a rivalry here. It’s going to be an exciting game. Plus, you’re playing against maybe the best player in the world. so, it’s a big challenge for our team.”

That player — Connor McDavid — scored a hat-trick on Mike Smith, providing a ‘Welcome to Calgary’ moment that the Flames netminder certainly won’t forget.

“He’s a special player, that’s for sure,” Smith said. “He’s one of the best players in the world. I get the chance to train with him in the summer so I know some of his secrets. But it seems like he’s always pulling out new stops. He’s always working on making his game better.

“He’s a player where you never know what to expect out of him. As a goalie, sometimes it’s a little bit scary. But the challenge is what makes it fun.”

McDavid has one goal and five assists in six games, including last game’s marker in Edmonton’s 6-4 loss to the Toronto. But, amid all of the the Oilers (10-14-2) struggles this season, they’ve won three out of their last five games.

Meanwhile, the Flames (14-10-1) are coming off a 3-0 blanking of the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday, a bounce-back performance from Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

They’re not perfect yet — they still have one of the worst penalty kills in the NHL — but showed signs of consistency in Thursday’s game and better puck management.

Something that is on their to-do list against the Oilers.

“Every game starts 0-0,” Jagr said. “You just have to make sure you play your best hockey, especially against a team like Edmonton that is very explosive. You just have to make sure you don’t play up and down against them. They protect the puck very well.

Smith indicated that downplaying the provincial rivalry aspect of the game; the Battle of Alberta-hype that will be playing out in the stands at the Dome and in homes, bars, and restaurants all the way from Lethbridge to Grande Prairie.

“That’s our main focus tonight,” Smith said. “We’re going to zone out the Battle of Alberta thing and just work on what we’re trying to accomplish and move forward, building on our last game.”

Calgary Flames vs. Edmonton Oilers

8 p.m., Scotiabank Saddledome, TV: CBC, Radio: Sportsnet 960 The Fan

THE BIG MATCHUP

Kris Russell vs. Himself

The former Flames defenceman’s own-goal went viral on Thursday as it was one of the deciding factors in the Edmonton Oilers 6-4 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. No doubt, the tough-as-nails, son-of-a-bullfighter will be motivated to make up for it. And what better way to do it in his former place of employment, the Scotiabank Saddledome? The 30-year-old played nearly three seasons for the Flames before he was traded at the deadline in 2015-16. Over the past two seasons, he’s become one of Edmonton’s heart-and-soul players.

FIVE STORYLINES FOR THE GAME

1. MOST COMPLETE EFFORT?

Calgary Flames head coach Glen Gulutzan thought that Thursday’s 3-0 win over the visiting Arizona Coyotes was exactly that — their most complete effort in 2017-18. Other games may come to mind (Calgary’s 2-0 win at Anaheim on Oct. 9, a 2-1 OT victory over Pittsburgh on Nov. 2, a 6-3 win over Detroit on Nov. 9) but the Flames certainly improved from Tuesday’s 4-1 stinker against Toronto. “I maybe had some disagreements with Connie (Craig Conroy),” Gulutzan said. “But it’s something we’re going to build off of.”

2. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

The Flames had a meeting after Tuesday’s game against Toronto and challenged their team to take care of unforced errors, better puck management and smarter play in general. Calgary improved to 14-10-1. “I thought we did a good job of keeping the game simple,” Gulutzan said. “You see what happens. I challenged the ‘D’ here . . . they’re a very coachable group and they want to win.” They’ll need the same effort in Saturday’s second instalment of the Battle of Alberta.

3. AUSSIE, AUSSIE, AUSSIE, OIL, OIL, OIL

The Oilers picked up Nathan Walker off waivers on Friday from the Washington Capitals, the first Australian born player to play in the NHL. The feisty 23-year-old winger was born in Wales but grew up in Sydney. He moved to the Czech Republic in 2007 in order to pursue his hockey career, playing with the HC Vitkovice. Walker was selected in the third round of the 2014 NHL draft by Washington. He ha played seven games for the Capitals this year, scoring once and racking up four penalty minutes.

4. LOOKIN’ AHEAD

The Flames are halfway through a four game homestand as they host Edmonton on Saturday and the return of G Brian Elliott and the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday. After enjoying a day off Friday and, likely, a day off on Sunday, the Flames will play Monday and then head on the road for a back-to-back against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday and Thursday. The Flames have a 7-6-0 home record.

5. GAUDREAU KEPT OFF THE SCORESHEET (AGAIN)

After being held point-less in Thursday’s game, LW Johnny Gaudreau was stuck at 19 points in November and just missed beating a franchise record for points in the month of November. Five players have done it: Carey Wilson (1987), Joe Mullen (1988), Doug Gilmour (1988), Gary Roberts (1992), and Jarome Iginla (2009). Heading into Friday’s games, Gaudreau was still sitting third in NHL scoring with 11 goals and 23 assists and 34 points in 25 games. He sat only behind Tampa Bay snipers Nikita Kucherov (17 goals and 19 assists) and Steven Stamos (11 goals and 26 assists).

This Week's Flyers

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